Rhubarb Sauce

I remember so well the time back in the early 1920s spent with my aunt and two cousins in Salem Depot, New Hampshire, every summer. My aunt was a wonderful cook, and one of the things I remember most is the rhubarb sauce she made. It tasted as though it had been mixed with strawberries.

After I was married in 1936, she gave me her recipe for rhubarb sauce. I have shared it with many friends, and everyone agrees: Follow the recipe to a T and you will have the most delicious rhubarb sauce you have ever tasted.

Ingredients:

2 cups water

2 scant cups sugar

3 pounds rhubarb cut into 1-inch pieces

Instructions:

Make a syrup with the water and sugar. Boil together a few minutes.

Add rhubarb to syrup when it starts boiling in center. Watch closely and let boil just 1 minute.

Now here is the trick that makes ordinary rhubarb sauce a Sauce Deluxe: Pour into a bowl or pan with a tight cover. Leave tightly covered until cold, and you will find a sauce very different from any you have ever eaten.

The recipe I’ve used for many years is 4 c. chopped rhubarb and 3/4 c. sugar. Stir over low-medium heat for roughly 10 minutes and it looks like sauce. You can use a pinch of cinnamon if you like the flavor! No water is needed in this one!

I just tried your rhubarb recipe and it turned out great! I added a dash of cinnamon and vanilla at the end and it is delicious. And the consistency is perfect. I did find it a bit sweet so I may try using slightly less sugar next time, but otherwise it’s terrific!

I make a simple rhubarb sauce with no sugar. Cut up 2 cups rhubarb into 1″pieces. Place in saucepan and cover with about 1/2 cup or more of honey. Let sit overnight. In the morning the liquid in the rhubarb will have seeped out. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat and cook for two minutes. Cover and let cool. You can add some cinnamon and vanilla if you wish.

This recipe seemed too simple to be true – but just what I needed for a huge amount of rhubarb that had been given to me. I didn’t have time to make pies and decided it was worth a try. I did follow the recipe to a T – just like it said – and it turned out EXACTLY like it said it would!!! Soooo delicious and amazing. We can’t stop eating it!! I thought I would freeze it all – but only ended up with a small amount to freeze as we ate the rest. I will never use another recipe – this one is a real winner. I’ve even passed it on to a friend already. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful and simple recipe!!!

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